UK Schools and Education News: July 2026

The fortnight to 11 July was about getting ready for the autumn term rather than winding down for summer. New statutory safeguarding rules were confirmed for September, fresh figures showed a late-June heatwave keeping pupils at home, and analysis pointed to far more schools facing follow-up visits under Ofsted's new report cards. Here are the developments worth noting from the past week or two.

Updated safeguarding rules confirmed for September

The Department for Education published the 2026 edition of Keeping Children Safe in Education on 7 July, the statutory guidance every school and college in England has to follow. The new version is for information only until it comes into force on 1 September 2026, which gives leaders the summer to revise policies and update staff training before the autumn term.

One notable structural change is the removal of the shorter "Annex A" summary of Part one, so from September all staff work from the same full set of safeguarding expectations rather than a condensed version. A summary of every change sits in Annex C of the guidance. Source: GOV.UK.

Heatwave pushes late-June attendance down

Pupil attendance statistics published on 9 July showed an attendance rate of 88.1% in the week ending 26 June, with absence running about five percentage points higher than the same week a year earlier. The DfE linked the dip to exceptionally hot weather, with amber and red heat warnings in place across parts of England and illness-related absence climbing during the week.

The department cautioned that the figures should be read in light of those conditions, so schools comparing their own registers are better off treating that week as an outlier than a change in trend. Source: GOV.UK (Explore Education Statistics).

More schools face Ofsted monitoring visits

Analysis for Tes by FFT Education Datalab found that 37% of schools inspected in 2025-26 will now get a monitoring inspection over an area of concern, more than double the rate seen under the old graded system. Of 1,360 published reports examined, 509 schools face a return visit, and 163 of those were flagged on the strength of a single "needs attention" grade in the new report cards.

Headteachers' leaders described the increase as "deeply concerning" and warned it adds to the pressure on school leaders, while the union representing senior inspectors said it would raise workload concerns with Ofsted. Source: Tes.

DfE sets EV scheme rules and an energy deadline

The DfE's weekly update on 8 July confirmed that academy trusts can offer electric vehicle salary sacrifice schemes to staff from 1 September, with colleges able to do the same from 1 August. The bulletin also reminded schools that registration for the DfE's Energy for Schools service closes at midday on 15 September, with more than 1,000 schools already signed up to secure savings on energy costs.

These are the kind of operational details that shape budget and staffing decisions for the coming year, so trust and business leaders will want them on the to-do list before the summer break ends. Source: GOV.UK.

What it means for parents and schools

For families, little changes day to day, but the September safeguarding update and the busier Ofsted monitoring picture are worth knowing if your child's school is due a visit. Our guides on how Ofsted ratings work and what Progress 8 measures explain the frameworks behind these headlines.